


Into the Unknown

by MisteryMaiden



Series: And It All Comes Crashing Down [8]
Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: Angry Michael, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, LAPD is so Done With This, Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV) Needs A Hug, Nephilim, Protective Amenadiel (Lucifer TV), Protective Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV), Protective Michael, Trixie Espinoza Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:28:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25741324
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MisteryMaiden/pseuds/MisteryMaiden
Summary: Linda has something she needs to tell Amenadiel and the LAPD would like to know if there are going to be more angels appearing without warning, please. Lucifer would like everyone to know that he's completely fine, why wouldn't he be fine? Trixie would like to say that she is also fine, really.
Relationships: Amenadiel & Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV), Azrael & Ella Lopez, Michael & Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV), Trixie Espinoza & Lucifer Morningstar
Series: And It All Comes Crashing Down [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1654117
Comments: 30
Kudos: 313





	Into the Unknown

**Author's Note:**

> This took a bit longer than the last one, mostly because I had a lot of trouble writing a certain part of this. Not even an important part. It's a fraction of this entire beast yet I rewrote it six times. Why did I rewrite a baby part of it six times, therefore delaying the chapter?
> 
> If I ever figure that out, I'll let you know. As of right now, I think that it might have been stress-induced. I didn't even change it enough to keep the other versions because I would get a paragraph in and then delete it all. I guess I was just in a mood. As soon as I threw my hands up in defeat, the rest of this came pretty easily, in-between classwork.
> 
> Hope you enjoy the new installment!

Olivia Monroe had never wanted a drink more in her life.

Sadly, at the rate that things were going, that was probably going to change in just a few more weeks when some new supernatural nonsense went down. As it was, Olivia had been forced to reevaluate that statement more than a few times in what amounted to only a few months, starting with Marcus ‘Cain’ Pierce and ending with the report currently sitting on her desk.

When she’d been first approached by the governor of LA, one Jericho Whitmen, to get a full report on all the supernatural events that had been occurring behind the scenes, Olivia had thought that it was a brilliant idea. Clearly, the LAPD had been out of the loop when it came to what was happening in their own city. Getting a full detailing from Morningstar, Canaan, and Smith had seemed like a good way to start in order to figure out just how to approach new events in the future.

The amount of insanity that had been going around behind the backs of the humans that inhabited this city was not something that Olivia had been prepared for.

Learning that Charlotte Richards had been temporarily dead, in Hell, and the literal _Goddess of All Creation_ had been running around in her place for a year was just the icing on the cake. All the completely batshit things that Morningstar had been spouting during that time made a whole lot more sense. Learning that there was a Goddess to go along with God had nearly had Olivia driving to the nearest bar right then and there.

That an angel named Uriel had lost his mind and gone around trying to kill people (or one Chloe Decker) and his own mother before Morningstar had been forced to put him down? If Morningstar hadn’t already had a therapist, Olivia would be ordering him to see one. Killing your own sibling to keep them from matricide and plain murder was not something that even a Celestial could walk off. Worse, it corresponded to the ‘Sniper Incident’ that had nearly caused her to kick Morningstar off the force entirely. It certainly shed everything in a brand-new light.

(She’d probably have to see about talking to Linda Martin and getting her into contact with a therapist specializing in military and police instances. If she was reading this right, Morningstar’s actions were extremely similar to a cop shooting an armed suspect to save a civilian. Taking a life to save a life. She would pass that along as well.)

It also made Decker’s actions so much worse. As it was, Olivia didn’t envy Linda Martin for dealing with that mess on top of everything else.

The best part was that Lucifer Morningstar, literal Devil, had saved the world along with Heaven from dealing with a Celestial war, without anyone the wiser to it. Something corroborated with the other angels currently walking around.

It seemed that Gabriel, Michael, and Raguel had all felt the need to fill in the blanks on what was going on in Heaven during all of this.

Even thinking about the implications of that made Olivia long for the very nice bottle of champagne waiting for her at home. A gift from Morningstar, probably because the man had figured out that alcohol was useful when it came to humans dealing with the supernatural.

Olivia appreciated its arrival on her doorstep so much more, now that she’d gone through these reports. Who would have thought that Satan could be so considerate, she snorted to herself silently.

That wasn’t even touching what had been going on with Malcolm Graham and Cain added on top. The absolute headache that went with those two was going to make everyone in the government that read all of this taking ulcer medications like candy. The implications of what Amenadiel had done by bringing Graham back was nausea-inducing. It was a good thing that this wasn’t going to be released to the general public or there could be riots. The family of Graham’s victims would probably lead a protest themselves. As it was, Canaan had already been punished by God for his actions and had since redeemed himself so there was that.

Charlotte Richard’s own resurrection by what was probably the Goddess who had pretended to be her, or maybe even God himself, didn’t help matters. Olivia could already see the problems that could arise if _that_ came to light. The only upside to any of this was that figuring out what to let the public know and what to keep confidential wasn’t her job.

She was already dreading having to figure out just what the new rules that Morningstar was going to have to follow when consulting, not to mention the ground rules for Smith. Or Mazikeen of the Lilim, according to the report sitting on her desk. A real demon that was apparently favored by God.

Olivia had been tempted to laugh at the bafflement that had been on Smith’s face when she’d relayed to them that conversation. If not for the horror of everything else, Olivia might have lost that battle.

That brought her thoughts back to another person, the only other human besides Linda Martin that was aware of the supernatural before William Kinley had entered the picture.

What Decker had done was enough for her to be convicted of premeditated attempted murder, accessory to torture, accessory after the fact, etc. Since this wasn’t ever going to make it to a human court system, Olivia made sure to keep Decker’s name out of everything that was going to be submitted to the higherups. That didn’t mean that Decker was going to get away with it.

Olivia wasn’t sure she wanted to know just what punishment God had inflicted on one of her former Detectives.

That didn’t mean that Oliva wasn’t struggling with the knowledge that she had so badly misjudged yet another of her detectives. Chloe Decker had been one of the department’s best. That she had sunk so low as to poison and attempt to murder her own partner was not something that Olivia could truly rationalize to herself. She would have pegged Espinoza as the most likely to do something like that, not Decker.

It truly was an example on just how little you could really know about a person. Another example, really. Graham, Decker, and Pierce were prime examples of how important it was to make sure that your officers were truly fit to protect the public. In a perfect world, Decker would have been brought to trial and sent to prison for her crimes.

Olivia sighed again. There was nothing to be done for it now. Decker’s name wasn’t ever going to reach anyone that was outside of this department. She’d already sent a memo around the station warning everyone that Decker wasn’t to be mentioned to Morningstar or any of the Celestials that were going to be appearing on and off.

Far too many of the officers were going to figure out just why that was, there was no helping it. If Decker hadn’t already resigned, she would have found herself a pariah amongst her peers, far worse than after Palmetto. Malcolm had not been nearly as well liked as Morningstar was. It was good for Decker that she’d transferred out before Morningstar or the angels had made their reappearance to the world.

Somehow, Olivia thought that Decker had already known that. How much of what she had told Olivia about her transfer had been the truth?

She would probably never know. Decker’s number had been changed after she’d moved, and Olivia didn’t want to deal with the questions that would be arise if she asked the SJPD for Decker’s new number. It would be better to just let all contact cease.

Olivia had made her choice on national television and Decker had made her own in Rome. Morningstar was the true hurt party in all of this.

Oliva nodded to herself and looked at the report in front of her again. Taking a deep breath, she uploaded the report to the system and cc’ed the necessary parties before submitting it.

Whatever happened now was out of her hands.

She hoped that the threat of Divine Judgement was enough.

* * *

_The Angels Amongst Us_

_Late yesterday evening the world got the first glimpse of the Archangel Michael, one of two remaining angels that have yet to reveal themselves to the world. Speculations about the angel’s appearance have taken the internet by storm since local LA celebrity Lucifer Morningstar was identified as the real-life Devil. Journalists, reporters, and bloggers from around the world have published articles speculating about the truth behind the Devil mythos, with articles published by residents of the LA area gaining millions of views each day._

_While the names Lucifer and Samael have been trending on Google searches the world over, the name Michael has come as a close third. Christian mythos is well known for the depiction of the Archangel Michael fighting and defeating Satan in the Rebellion against God. With angels walking on Earth and the Devil becoming a public figure, one cannot help but wonder about the Archangel that was said to have battled the Devil and won._

_I, for one, was not prepared for the answer that we received._

_The Archangel Michael and Lucifer Morningstar are, in fact, identical twins._

_The internet exploded the moment that a picture of the two, standing side by side was leaked, showing them leaving a meeting with the UN. The first meeting where all the angels originally listed on by the Archangel Gabriel in her first appearance._

_The reveal of the angelic twins has religions around the world baffled. Various religious texts are being reanalyzed with this new knowledge taken into account. All supposed sightings of both the Devil and Archangel Michael are being re-evaluated with this new information._

_So far, no comment has been made by the angelic dignitaries in response to this newest, well, revelation._

* * *

Trixie sat on her bed, trying desperately to keep her sobs muffled.

Today hadn’t been a good day. The angels had all left to go to a meeting and her Dad had been forced to go in to work. Maze had a bounty that she’d left for yesterday and Miss Ella had been called in with her Dad.

Miss Linda was here instead. She’d come to talk to Amenadiel and had offered to stay when everyone realized that there wasn’t anyone here to watch Trixie. While Miss Linda was one of Trixie’s favorite people, the little girl couldn’t help but think about another blond that she’d much rather be with at the moment.

Ever since those boys had attacked her, all Trixie had wanted was the comfort of her mother’s arms. Her mom had always been able to cheer her up, was always available to play even after a long shift, and Trixie _missed_ those game nights. She missed Taco Tuesday, her bedroom, the apartment that they’d shared with Maze. She missed the walls with the badly hidden knife holes, covered by her pictures. She missed listening to her mom trying to explain dishes to Maze.

Trixie missed her _family_.

She was eleven and all she wanted was her mommy.

The girl buried her face into the soft blanket of her new bed. It was more comfortable than the bed she’d had before, which had badly needed replacing. Her mom had been planning on saving up for a new one. Trixie had found the sheets for the new bed, bigger than the one she had, in her mom’s empty closest.

The last item to be gathered from her old home. One that Trixie had hidden in one of her packed boxes before anyone else had seen.

Lucifer had given them the space underneath his penthouse to live in rent free. Sharing the penthouse had become hard when there were so many of them now. Trixie had been allowed to pick a room to herself, bigger than any room she’d ever had before. All of her old furniture was here, minus the old bed. They finished the final sweep of the old apartment early this morning before the angels had left, before Miss Ella and Dad had been called to work.

Trixie rubbed at her eyes, not bothering to curb her sobs anymore. There wasn’t anyone on this level to hear anyways. Miss Linda was in the penthouse, throwing up. Trixie wasn’t supposed to know that last part, but she’d snuck up earlier and heard the sounds. Lucifer really hated doors.

“Spawn?” a soft voice interrupted her, startling the girl. Trixie jerked her head up, eyes blurred with tears. In her doorway stood Lucifer, face pensive as he looked at her.

She must have been crying longer than she’d thought. Important meetings are supposed to take a long time, Trixie had thought. That was why her Dad had been so worried about leaving her alone, even though Lucifer had put a lot of security in when Daddy had agreed to move in permanently for a while.

Arms wrapped around her before Trixie could even register that Lucifer had moved. For once, it was her who startled at the action. Not for long because Trixie wasn’t one to overanalyze things like hugs. She buried into his side, clutching the fabric of his suit with an iron grip. The moment she settled, soft feather brushed against her skin as Lucifer cuddled her with his wings.

Angels, it had turned out, hugged with wings more than arms. Well, Michael and Lucifer did, mostly.

It really had explained a lot about Lucifer’s reaction to hugs in the past.

Humming vibrated his body, soft and soothing. It wasn’t a tune that she’d heard before, though it settled something that Trixie hadn’t known was hurting. The sobs that she’d been fighting against slowed and stopped, followed quickly by her tears. Trixie waited until the tears dried on her face before she slowly moved away from the comforting form of the angel beneath her.

Lucifer was softly singing, now. It didn’t sound like any language Trixie had heard before. It felt special, as if she was hearing something that was beyond human. The melody was strange as well, almost as if it was meant to be faster and slower at the same time. Trixie closed her eyes, listening as the words brushed against her and blanketed her with love. It was a song that she could listen to for the rest of her life, a song that spoke of an everlasting love that could never be broken.

It stopped eventually, tapering off as Lucifer noticed she had moved. Trixie was surprised that she could still hear it, though the vibrations that told her Lucifer was singing had stopped.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Lucifer asked, softly. The song still played, soothing the hurt that had torn at her stomach and forced tears from her eyes in the first place.

Trixie shook her head, eyes still closed as she listened to the music he’d sung for her. Talking to Lucifer about her mom wasn’t something that Trixie ever wanted to do. She didn’t think that she could bare listening to him defend her mom, call himself evil, say that he’d deserved it. If he did, it would be the truth because Lucifer did not lie. That he would think of himself that way would be so much worse than just knowing what her mom had done was.

She didn’t want to hurt him by telling him that Trixie wanted her mommy, wanted things to go back to how they were. He would think it was his fault, Trixie was sure of it.

“Did I tell you about my mother, Spawn?” Lucifer said as if he was changing the subject.

Trixie felt her eyes open in surprise, looking at the soft dark eyes looking at her. She shook her head.

“In the beginning, my Mum and Dad fell in love,” the Devil said, a wing settling around Trixie’s shoulders. “As a result of their love, the universe was formed. The Big Bang, as humans call it. For a very long time, everything was good. They had children that they named Angels and Dad formed the universe into more than just an empty void. At his direction, Michael filled creation with never-ending darkness that was only broken up by the stars I lit within it. Under His direction, we created the plants that fill the universe, crafted the very ground you now stand on right beside Him.”

“Where was your mom?” Trixie asked, eyes wide.

Lucifer smiled slightly. “Raising the rest of us, keeping order while Dad created. She was happy with Her role, happy to watch us grow around Her. Until one day She wasn’t. A day when Her words became more clipped and Her anger at Dad’s distraction grew. They started fighting, then. Screaming matches that would shake the foundations of the Silver City.”

Her mom and dad had argued a lot before they got divorced, Trixie remembered. Mom wanted him to be home more and Dad had always been so distracted by work.

Lucifer nodded, as if he knew who she was thinking about. “Yes, I’m sure that you’ve had your own experiences with that. Mum, however, came to the conclusion that if Humanity was gone, He would start to see things Her way. That, Beatrice, is where your plagues came from.”

They’d learned about plagues in history, Trixie thought with wide eyes. Plagues killed a lot of people before medicine started getting better. “Did it work?” she asked, so very curious.

“According to Michael, no,” Lucifer shook his head. “Dad was furious about Her actions. He cast Her into Hell where I was to guard Her during Her punishment.”

Trixie frowned. “Did you?”

Lucifer gave her a small smile. A smile that was so sad Trixie never wanted to see him make it again. “Yes. I was angry with Her, you see. Not just for genocide, though I wasn’t a fan of that. No, I was angry with Her because when I was cast into Hell, She said nothing. It was only right that I give her the same consideration, was it not? For millennia, I did not visit Her once during Her time in Hell.”

“Then one day, She escaped. Came to Earth, to LA, searching for me. She wanted to reconnect, you see. Missed Her children, if She’s to be believed,” Lucifer smiled at Trixie’s wide eyes.

“Your mom was in LA?” the girl asked, trying to picture it and failing. Trixie couldn’t picture a Goddess walking around in LA and going unnoticed. When Lucifer’s Dad had appeared, Trixie had been able to _tell_ there was something more to Him. “When?”

“Just after the incident with the bad man,” Lucifer said. Trixie didn’t need him to explain further, she could remember the hanger and smell of blood without much effort. She could still hear the gunshot and see Lucifer falling to the floor.

“Where is she now?” Trixie asked, curious and desperate not to think about that warehouse.

“Gone,” Lucifer said. The Wings against her shoulder’s shuddered a bit. “She wanted to start a war in Heaven, wanted things to go back to how they’d used to be, and was willing to risk the deaths of my siblings to do so. She wanted what our family used to be.”

Trixie felt her stomach twist as the words pushed at that secret place that she’d thought she’d hidden from him.

Lucifer smiled at her again, a gentle expression. “Linda told me something that I told Mum. It’s no use to go backward, Urchin. Clinging to the past gets you nowhere. You have to go forwards. For me, that meant staying here in LA. For Mum, it meant letting go of us and making a universe all of Her own without Dad there. A new start.”

Something cold was placed in her hands while she stared at his face. Trixie looked down to see a phone sitting there.

When feathers disappeared from her skin, Trixie jerked her head up to see Lucifer walking towards the door sans wings. He smiled at her once he reached it. “I think, Spawn, it’s time you move forwards instead of backward. Don’t you think?”

Trixie smiled at him. She smiled as he left, closing the door behind him.

After a few minutes, the eleven-year-old unlocked the phone she’d been handed, her own phone, and pulled up her mom’s new number.

It rang three times before it was answered. “Trixie?” her mom asked, voice so hopeful.

“Mom?” Trixie smiled through her tears. “Can you talk?”

“Always,” her mom told her with a choked voice. “Always, monkey.”

* * *

“It has been a long time since I heard that song,” Michael said as Lucifer left Trixie’s room, the voice of the younger girl on the phone reaching them.

Lucifer gave a half glance back towards Trixie’s room with eyes that screamed longing and pain. They both knew who the girl was talking to in that room.

They’d come back from their meeting early, as Lucifer had received a call from Linda that she was ill. A prayer, really. Michael wanted to ask more about it though kept his silence. He’d only been relayed a slightly altered, incomplete summary of the prayer when Lucifer had announced something had come up and the two of them would need to leave early. Only, when they’d arrived, the sound of sobs had distracted them to the child that had already wormed her way into Michael’s affections.

Trixie Espinoza was sobbing in her room.

Lucifer had taken one look at the door and walked away. Michael had been baffled when his Twin returned with a cell phone in hand, one that belonged to the young girl. A grim set to his face, Lucifer had opened the door.

The following song and conversation reminded Michael of the days were Samael would attempt to comfort one of their younger siblings, whenever they were upset. As socially inept as Lucifer was, his Twin always seemed to know what to say to cheer up one of their siblings when something was truly wrong (especially when that something wasn’t caused by either himself or Michael). It was the gentleness and comfort that was unique to Lucifer, a trait that Michael couldn’t emulate no matter how often he had wished otherwise.

Light was far gentler than Darkness, at times. Soft in a way that the dark just wasn’t and could never be. A darkness that was soft was only a lie being told as it lured those not aware of it into a false sense of security.

Samael, now Lucifer, may not be able to see those gentle times as anything noteworthy. That didn’t stop the rest of them from seeing the truth of these interactions, which truly showed just what kind of person his Twin was. Evil was never an option because Evil did not feel the need to comfort a crying child. Evil did not seek out justice for those that were wronged.

“It seemed appropriate,” his Twin said, voice still soft. There was grief in those identical brown eyes as Lucifer stared at that closed door. Michael could feel the intense need that Lucifer was trying to bury down in his chest.

It broke Michael’s heart that Lucifer longed for that human even still. That the woman who had helped that priest torture and nearly destroy his other half still had a hold on Lucifer’s heart. The worst part was that there was nothing anyone could do to fix it. Chloe Decker had thrown his other half away. Had taken the love that Lucifer had entrusted her with and abused it until the Devil was broken and bleeding.

Having her sentenced to Hell did nothing to soothe the rage her actions caused in Michael’s center. To worsen her crime, it was not only Lucifer who was suffering.

Linda and Ella grieved the friend Chloe Decker had been to them. Mazikeen of the Lilim was nearly as hurt as Lucifer, having been her next intended target. Daniel was still struggling with the knowledge of what this woman had done and the fallout of what her actions had caused.

Trixie Espinoza, who Michael had come to adore, was suddenly left without her mother. Her entire world had been shaken and she was so young. If she had been a fledgling, her flight feathers would only have just started coming in. Everything in Michael screamed that they should be protecting her, should be making sure that whatever hurt her was solved. And they couldn’t solve it because that woman, that mortal _Miracle_ who was intended to be an olive branch from Father to Lucifer, had chosen to betray his Twin.

If there was ever a human that Michael hated, it was Chloe Decker.

It was a feeling that Michael was careful never to let Lucifer find. He didn’t want to hurt his Twin more than he already was hurting because of that woman. Michael had hurt his Twin enough on his own, during the Rebellion and the eons that followed.

Father Himself could not make Michael hurt him ever again.

“Let’s leave the Spawn to it,” Lucifer said, his voice suddenly cheery. The emotion didn’t reach his brown eyes, however. It was a trick intended to make it so Michael thought Lucifer was alright. It said a lot about the state of their relationship that Lucifer would ever think such a trick would work on him. “Linda is likely wondering what’s taking us so long.”

As if there wasn’t a single problem in the world, his Twin started towards the penthouse. Michael followed, allowing him to believe that Michael hadn’t caught the roiling emotions that Lucifer was burying down.

There were times that the Light needed to believe in its own tricks. Michael could not bring himself to uncover the truth behind the trick. Maybe if their relationship had been what it was before the Rebellion. Maybe if there were not so much time between them now and when they had breathed as one being. Maybe if there weren’t eons that remained a mystery to Michael, hidden away in his brother’s mind so far that Michael would not ever be able to reach them. Maybe then, Michael would push his Twin to let his trick fall.

That was not the case and it may not be the case for a long while to come.

The walk was silent from thereon.

* * *

Linda had thought that she would be fine.

She was only a few months into the pregnancy, and she had only just started showing the signs. Logically, she thought that the morning sickness would gradually get worse over time.

That was not what had happened. Whoever had named this ‘morning’ sickness was a liar, Linda growled to herself as she heaved into the toilet once more. It was nearly one in the afternoon and her stomach was still trying to heave itself out of her throat.

“Oh dear,” the familiar British voice was a welcome relief. Linda had felt so bad for having to call Lucifer and Michael back, but Trixie needed someone who could actually look in on her. Leaving the young girl alone without support was not going to do her emotions any favors in the long run. Trixie was at a vulnerable state in her emotions right now and she needed an adult to show her that she was never going to be alone. Currently, Linda wasn’t making it anywhere past the bathroom doorway anytime soon. Making it necessary to get someone they could trust back here to check on the girl.

She was stopped from apologizing to either angel (or Devil, in Lucifer’s case) as she vomited once more.

Linda swore that she hadn’t eaten nearly as much as what was coming up.

“Should we call a doctor?” Michael asked, sounding alarmed. “Humans do this when something is wrong, yes?”

Linda was almost intrigued to see how Lucifer would handle that. The Devil, at least, knew just how often throwing up was the cause of things that weren’t long lasting or even that dangerous.

Hangovers and migraines could be bitches, she thought in amusement.

“No,” Lucifer denied after a pensive moment of thought. “For some strange reason, humans seem to do this rather often for various reasons. I’m rather at a loss when it comes what is causing it now. Linda, is this something a doctor could assist with?”

Not a bad answer, she acknowledged. “No,” she managed to croak out as the urge to vomit began to die down. In fact, it had started ebbing the moment that the two angels had entered the room. She suspected that it had nothing to do with their presence and everything to do with the fact that she had probably emptied everything that had been in her stomach by now. “I think I’m done.”

She hoped that she was done. Dear God, she hoped that she was done, if only just for the moment.

“Are you certain?” Michael asked, still sounding alarmed. She knew it was Michael because Lucifer was currently handing her a glass of water.

Linda took it gratefully and rinsed her mouth. “Do I want to know why you have glasses in here?” she asked, jokingly.

Lucifer gave her a wicked grin, waggling his brows. She laughed at his antics, knowing that was what he’d intended by the smug turn of his lips. Michael seemed to find her laughter as enough reassurance because the distress that had been rippling the shadows in the room died down.

Linda had noticed during her interactions with Michael that his emotions seemed to be reflected in the shadows if they were strong enough. She hadn’t seen anything similar to that with Lucifer when it came to light, so it was another thing that helped her keep track of which twin she was talking to. Besides Lucifer’s preference for suits over casual clothing. Like all twins, you had to pay attention to the little details that separated them as individuals.

“Would like help to the couch?” Lucifer asked her, head tilted and face concerned.

“That would be lovely,” Linda told him with relief. She really hadn’t been looking forward to trying to get there on her own, not after the dizziness started to make itself known now that she wasn’t distracted with purging her stomach.

Was that a normal pregnancy symptom? Or was it something that was going to be unique to her since she was carrying a baby angel?

Linda really needed to talk to Amenadiel about this.

Thankfully, getting the couch hadn’t been all that difficult in the long run. Lucifer helped her sit while Michael gathered her a glass of juice, probably to help the horrible taste in her mouth better than water did. No doubt Lucifer had sent him off.

Honestly, having those two be able to communicate silently was both useful and fascinating. She hadn’t figured out if they could talk mind to mind or if it was just body language. They’d answer if Linda asked. She knew that.

Asking would take the fun out of trying to figure it out on her own, though. She might even miss the silent cues they didn’t know they were giving if they said it was mind to mind and she let that cloud her judgment. This was a perfect time to learn more about angelic behaviors that could help her in treating Lucifer. Maybe even other angels if the rest decided to follow in Lucifer’s steps and get therapy.

Linda was pretty sure all the angels she’d met, Amenadiel included, were in need of at least some therapy. Even before she found out she was giving birth to a Nephilim Linda had been considering studying angelic behavior and mentality as a way to help integrate into society. God knew (probably even literally and not just figuratively) that Lucifer and Amenadiel had come to her for help understanding humans enough that she figured it was going to be necessary.

Now she wanted to know as much as possible so that she would be prepared for what her unborn child might experience when they were born.

“Better?” Lucifer asked after she took a large drink of the offered juice. Apple, she thought with amusement. Probably so the acidity of it wouldn’t trigger another purge.

“Yes, thank you,” she told them both as she settled into the couch.

“I hate to pry,” Lucifer began, sounding almost nervous. In the not so distant past, there wouldn’t have been any of that nervousness. In recent weeks, Lucifer had lost the confidence that had once had him asking all manner of invasive questions to those around him. A result of Chloe’s betrayal, Linda sighed to herself. “I have to ask, however. Do you know what that was about? I haven’t known you as one to throw up like that, even when properly sloshed.”

Which he knew because of their early relationship, Linda sighed to herself. They’d gotten drunk a few times before they had sex. Or she had gotten drunk and he’d seemed not to even get a minor buzz. She took a look at his face, which had signs of anxiety on it. Anxiety that wasn’t completely caused by his more wary approach to the humans of their group. He had a very good guess as to what had caused her to throw up like that.

Linda wasn’t showing in the way that most did when pregnant. That didn’t mean she didn’t have a decent bump starting to form. She’d discovered that about a week ago, not long after she’d gotten the results back. It was obvious, once she’d been looking for it.

Lucifer would have felt it when he’d helped her up and to the couch.

“I’m pregnant,” she admitted. Michael looked stunned and Lucifer, as she’d thought, looked unsurprised. She raised her eyebrows at him, letting him know she knew he’d figured it out before he had asked.

Lucifer, as usual, looked unrepentant. In fact, he looked a mix of delighted and a tad confused. Probably at the delight. He wasn’t one who generally enjoyed ‘spawn’, Trixie being the first exception to the rule. Linda didn’t know enough about angels to help him sort through those emotions, either.

She was really going to have to pin one of them down and have them explain a bit about angelic culture to her. There was so much that she was unable to help him with because of the difference in species. Linda had become increasingly aware of that ever since he had finally shown her what he was, and she had calmed down enough. Maze had filled in the culture blanks that involved demons, but Amenadiel had been rather tight-lipped about angelic behaviors the few times she enquired.

“I wasn’t aware you were seeing anyone recently,” Lucifer said, drawing her attention back to the present and away from her job. Truthfully, his face looked rather pensive as he seemed to start connecting the dots.

The only relationship that he was aware of her being in recently had been with Amenadiel. Lucifer knew just enough about human pregnancy to know that anything before that would have been too long ago for it to just showing now.

“Ah,” he said after a moment, noticing at the pointed look she was giving him. “Well, then. That’s going to be interesting…”

“Care to share?” Michael asked, looking intrigued by Lucifer’s interaction with her. He always looked that way when Linda managed to convey something to his twin without words.

Probably mind to mind communication then, Linda thought absently.

“Our big brother is about to be a father,” Lucifer told his twin, a bit of glee, and what sounded like fear entering his voice. “Linda’s been dating Amenadiel.”

“Oooohhh,” Michael said, and his face changed as that set in. He gave her a startled look as the implications played across his face. While his behaviors weren’t identical to Lucifer, Linda found that they were similar enough for her to partially pick up his thoughts, with a bit more room for error taken into consideration because of said differences between the twins.

“I haven’t told him yet,” she confided to them. “I haven’t known for long and things haven’t exactly been calm. Every time I get the chance to get him alone, something happens and he’s running off.”

Like today when they’d been planning on getting together for lunch. The UN had suddenly asked the angels to come to a meeting and those plans had been derailed.

Michael, who had been the responsible party to distracting Amenadiel in a few of those other instances, looked sheepish. “Apologies,” the angel winced. “I would have sought out Gabriel instead if I’d known.”

“I could have told you it was important,” she reminded him. “I just chickened out and used the interruptions as an excuse.”

Linda had no idea how the angel was going to take it. As far as she knew, Nephilim seemed to be outlawed by God. While the bible didn’t get everything right, she knew that there were parts of it that were true. Lucifer had confirmed and refuted a few of the events. Or even just told her the truth behind it.

Really, Linda could have lived without knowing that the apple was a sexual metaphor. Even if that did seem much more in character with him than offering a fruit was. Lucifer was also quick to point out that God had not actually forbidden the angels from having sex with Adam or Eve, so he hadn’t technically disobeyed during that incident. Even if his Father hadn’t found it a compelling argument for why Lucifer shouldn’t have been in trouble for it.

_“They didn’t suddenly find the need to wear clothes afterward either,”_ the devil had huffed. _“They didn’t need clothing until Earth, as the weather changes caused them to need the protection. That drivel is completely fanfiction concocted by prude priests. And I wasn’t a snake, obviously. Shapeshifting isn’t one of my gifts. That belongs to Sariel.”_

Linda brought her attention back from the memory to the current Lucifer, who was having a silent conversation with Michael. The two looked to be debating something between them.

“If you wanted,” Lucifer began, slowly. “We could return to the meeting and send Amenadiel back instead.”

Linda blinked at that, the thought not having occurred to her. She had asked Lucifer to come back because she knew that Trixie adored the Twins. Michael had quickly risen to her second favorite angel behind Lucifer during the time here. Linda had found it hilarious that both twins were wrapped around that little girl’s fingers. Any time Trixie was even threatening tears, both would go into a panic in order to cheer her up or cave in the argument that they’d been having with her should that have been the cause.

Linda wondered when Trixie would realize that if she asked, both would be more than willing to make sure that she ended up president of Mars. Even if they had to terraform the planet to make it happened.

“That would be appreciated,” Linda told them, smiling. “At this rate, he’ll end up being the last person to know.”

The first no doubt being God. She wondered if He had seen that she was pregnant when he’d visited them in her office.

As the two prepared to leave, sending off a message to Amenadiel, Linda tried to figure out just how she was going to break this to the angel.

Her hand never left its place resting on her stomach.

* * *

Linda was going to have a baby. With Amenadiel.

Lucifer thought he could be forgiven for his disbelief at the mere thought of it.

Nephilim were not unheard of. There had been a time where the Grigori, those of the Host that had fallen in love with a human, had spawned a few. Dad and Mum had been intrigued by the idea, at first. His mother had never been the biggest fan of humans, so her adoration of the Nephilim born had stunned them all in those early days. After seeing Mum’s interaction on earth before She’d left to Her own universe, Lucifer wasn’t as surprised as he had been.

The Nephilim had been Her grandchildren by blood. That outweighed Her normal derision for humanity.

Then tragedy struck. A group of humans declared the Nephilim as abominations and slaughtered them while their angelic parents were away. None of the children had made it past five years of age.

They’d all been too angelic as it had turned out. When their bodies had died under the mortal’s weapons, the Nephilim’s souls had been sent immediately towards the Silver City. That was where the true tragedy of the situation had occurred. Angels of a certain age did not have the power to cross-dimensional barriers without help. If they’d been more human, Azrael could have guided them, and the children would have been fine.

Instead, their souls had immediately flung them across the barriers. Too young, they had all been destroyed during the crossing.

The Grigori had been devastated as had the human parents. As the angels grieved in Heaven, the human parents had located the group who had killed their children and sought vengeance on them. While a few of the human parents died in the attack, all of the murderers had died in the assault.

It was the first time that Dad had ever allowed a human who had taken a life into the Silver City. Such was His rage at the death of the Nephilim. Those souls behind the attack had been destroyed before they ever managed to find their way to Hell. Lucifer had looked for them, after his Rebellion, just to be sure none had slipped past. Unlikely as it was, the Devil had not been willing to take the chance.

It was afterward that Dad had started that oh so famous flood.

Not the entire world like the bible claimed. Just the entire continent that humanity had been living on at the time. Mum, in Her own fury, had frozen the entire thing afterwards. It remained that way even now, though the changing climate of the planet has started freeing it from the ice, according to the few articles on the place Lucifer had read while on Earth.

Needless to say, the Devil was concerned about what would happen now that another Nephilim was on its way. Beatrice had already been attacked and her only crime was simply knowing the angels. If the humans went after the baby…

“It would be war,” Michael finished the thought for him. His Twin was just as nervous, remembering the same events Lucifer was. “The Host wouldn’t stand for it. The Grigori even more than the rest. They haven’t been the same since. They keep to the Heavens of their humans, away from the rest of the Host. I’ve only seen them emerge for the full gathering of the Host called by Father.”

They had even remained passive and away during Lucifer’s Rebellion. Other than a few words of support, it was like the life had been drawn out of them. Lucifer wasn’t even sure if they could feel the _itch_ that infected the rest of the Host. If they did, Lucifer doubted that they would ever return to Earth.

Likely, they’d explore the rest of the mortal plane, away from the Earth and humanity.

That had been something that Lucifer had not wanted to bring up with his human companions. Or not yet, at least.

Humanity had not been the first project that God had created. It likely wasn’t even the last project, knowing his Dad. They’d made thousands of different planets under God’s directions. Crafted so many different forms of life that Lucifer couldn’t remember them all without effort. Humanity was not the first. Not the first life, not the first with souls (every form of sentient life had a soul, he had no idea why the humans believed otherwise), and not the first to be bipedal.

Humanity was unique in that it was the first to have _free will_. Any other species in this universe had to obey an order by God and Goddess when given one. That was what made humanity stand out, what drew the rest of the Host here. Free Will.

That was why none of the thousands of other sentient species that existed found themselves in Hell unless they had started there. While the other species felt guilt, that was true, they didn’t have the option to feel the kind of guilt that sent a human soul to Hell. Humans were all responsible for their own decisions, to kill another or to go against what they knew to be morally wrong. The others could not do that, last Lucifer knew. He doubted that it had changed, considering he had not found any nonhuman soul trapped in the Hell loop.

The plan had always been to grant humans free will as a test run before allowing it to the other species God had created on the mortal plane. (Not the angels, God had said when Lucifer had inquired back when he was still Samael. It was why he’d felt it necessary to stage a Rebellion, hoping to change God’s mind on allowing His children the same right He was planning on giving His projects. It was also why Lucifer had thought he might win.) Lucifer didn’t know that status of those plans, God hadn’t exactly been confiding in him the last few eons.

It was that ability to choose that made them so fascinating to the angels, what would make Earth much more appealing to most when compared to the rest of the mortal plane.

If divinity made a human pause, Lucifer wasn’t sure what they would do if they figured out that ‘aliens’ were very much a reality. He paid enough attention to the ones that were certain of the existence of life past Earth and knew that most were treated with derision.

No, probably best to leave that out until they made enough headway into their negotiations with the human governments. They would bring up the other projects when it wouldn’t interfere with what was happening now.

Before Lucifer’s thoughts could trail off too far, Amenadiel finally appeared before them. “Is Linda alright?” he asked, face worried.

“She’s doing better,” Lucifer told his brother, waving the concern away. If possible, Lucifer would have preferred Michael to answer. She wasn’t fine, the vomiting had proven that. Linda wasn’t ill, however, which is what Lucifer had thought when he’d gotten her prayer. She also wasn’t unharmed, as she seemed to be at least slightly emotionally distraught at the moment. Which meant that Lucifer couldn’t be specific without telling Amenadiel the full truth.

If Michael were the only one that answered, sadly, Amenadiel would notice and panic. Leaving Lucifer to skirt around the truth as carefully as possible without going into detail.

“I have, sadly, very little value in things at this point,” the devil said easily. “I rather gathered that Linda would have preferred a different manner of assistance than what Michael and I can provide. I suppose alcohol was not the correct item to offer.”

Lucifer had, in fact, offered her a drink when he poured one from himself. Really, how was he supposed to know that women carrying spawn shouldn’t partake? Lucifer hadn’t really known many pregnant human women before. He was pretty sure that Linda was the first he’d ever interacted with personally for more than a single conversation.

The look of exasperation on Amenadiel’s face told the Devil that his older brother hadn’t picked up on what he wasn’t saying. Michael’s amusement confirmed his suspicions.

“I think that this is one of those times that someone with better social skills is necessary,” Michael informed Amenadiel. “Out of all of us on Earth, you are the only one that has a relationship past being Lucifer’s sibling with the humans. If neither of us are properly equipped to deal with what is happening, you were the next best option. Trixie is fonder of you than Gabriel and Raguel.”

That last part could be true. Lucifer had never asked the Spawn her opinion on Gabriel and Raguel. As far as he knew, neither had Michael.

Michael may not bother lying, that didn’t mean that he told the full truth in the same way that Lucifer did. Saying that the Spawn was fonder of Amenadiel than their other siblings without a confirmation would have taken a lot more careful wording than Michael needed for Lucifer to say. Since he didn’t know if that was true, Lucifer wouldn’t have been unable to say plainly. It just would have been more difficult and caught Amenadiel’s attention.

The Spawn wouldn’t mind that Amenadiel was here instead, not if it was because Linda needed to tell the Angel of Time about something this important. She would play along when Lucifer updated her on the situation.

Once she was off the phone, Beatrice would notice the text he’d sent her explaining why he’d been back early and why he had left again. The Spawn would make sure that the two remained uninterrupted for long enough that Linda could have her conversation with Amenadiel.

(He pretended that he didn’t know who Beatrice was talking to just below them.)

“Alright,” Amenadiel sighed, looking slightly amused. “You both didn’t miss much. Gabriel took over after you left to check on Linda and has yet to manage to get to the point of the meeting. It’ll be for the best to have you back there, Luci. At least we were getting somewhere before you left.”

Lucifer grinned at that, amused. “Distracted, are they?”

Gabriel had that effect on any species that weren’t divine. It was the power that made her the Messenger. She drew in anyone listening until they couldn’t imagine trying to talk over her or to dictate to her. It was being muted, at the moment, otherwise even Lucifer wouldn’t have been able to keep the humans on track. The moment Gabriel said anything, Lucifer had to dispel the need the humans have to listen to her. He hadn’t considered that leaving would have meant that Gabriel didn’t have a counterbalance to her effect any longer.

“I was waiting for her to start snapping at them,” Amenadiel said, eyes amused. “Raguel was able to call attention to the meeting for maybe five minutes before Gabriel made a comment and ruined it.”

Michael snorted, his Twin more than amused at the trouble their little siblings were having.

“At least you didn’t have to resort to stopping time,” Lucifer smirked. “That might have been bloody.”

“We should get back before they are left alone with Gabriel too long,” Michael broke in, stopping the discussion. “Gabriel might decide to smite one of them if this goes on for long enough. As much as she is the Messenger, our sister is not patient.”

No, patience was never a word that should be used when describing the Archangel Gabriel. The wind was just as much part of their sister as fire was part of Lucifer. It gave her the speed to deliver her messages quicker, which resulted in irritation when she was left stagnant for too long.

If his humans thought that Lucifer was horrid when he was bored, Gabriel took it to a new level. While entertaining, it wouldn’t endear them to the humans around them.

Without another word, Lucifer and Michael left back towards the meeting.

* * *

The Angel Raguel had not thought much of his assignment on the Earth passed it being a way for him to spend more time with his sibling. He had memories of Samael before the Fall and far before the Rebellion. During those days, Raguel had been just a fledgling that had loved to listen to his older brother sing.

Samael and Michael had played a large part in the lives of every fledgling. Mostly Samael, as Michael didn’t feel the same need to play with the fledglings like the Morning Star did. Dazzling them with lights, singing to them when they couldn’t sleep, playing with them even when most of their older siblings couldn’t be bothered to. If Mother or Father were unavailable, as was sometimes the case, Samael was the first choice after them.

Michael had just been a bonus, never far away from his Twin.

Then the Rebellion happened, followed by the Fall. Samael left the Silver City, banished by their Father, and Michael withdrew from the host until in a few centuries, it was rare to see him at all.

Raguel was one of the few that couldn’t find it in himself to hate his older brother. The good memories far outweighed the bad and Samael had adored the archangel as a fledgling.

Seeing Lucifer in the Infirmary, bleeding and dying, would forever haunt his memory. Raguel did not believe that he would ever get passed the devastation in the Host nor the sounds of his older siblings begging Lucifer not to leave. Michael promising to follow after him.

He did not believe that any of his siblings knew that he was there for that. Unable to make himself enter the Infirmary and unable to leave. Trapped by the horror and grief that had torn at his soul.

Father knew, of course. There was little that escaped the Almighty nowadays. After eons of allowing His children to roam without his constant attention, God was refusing to let a single instance by Him now. Raguel was the only one among his siblings on Earth that was aware of this, at least consciously. The only one that Father had told this to directly.

Raguel was the Angel of Justice therefore he needed to know that none who deserved Justice would escape the mortal realm unscathed. It soothed him to know that those who may escape his own attentions would never escape the attentions of Father. He could focus on the humans that surround him and his siblings, leaving the rest to God.

It was nice, being on Earth and sitting with his siblings. Even if the humans were starting to get on Gabriel’s nerves, Raguel hadn’t felt this content in a very long time. He couldn’t remember the last time his soul was settled, missing that constant ache of confinement.

“Right then!” Lucifer’s voice interrupted his thoughts. Raguel turned his attention to his older brothers, who had arrived back from dealing with one of Lucifer’s humans. “Amenadiel has decided to switch places with us. Shall we get back to business?”

Like that, the humans seemed to snap out the daze that was being created by Gabriel. There had been a time that Gabriel had been able to control the affect that she had on humans. Raguel wasn’t sure what had changed that. This entire event, Gabriel had been unable to stop herself from stalling the humans in their seats whenever she spoke.

It was a good thing that Lucifer was back. Even as Samael, his older brother had been able to dilute the affect of Gabriel’s powers. The Messenger demanded attention and to be heard. Will was the only thing that could balance out that need. Lucifer was the Will and it showed in the way the glazed expressions of the humans morphed into confusion.

“Apologies,” Lucifer said easily. “Gabriel has that effect. I didn’t quite realize that it would be this strong.”

“We would have considered sending Amenadiel from the beginning if we had,” Michael added. Raguel would have snorted. Lucifer never would have considered sending anyone else. Michael would have so it wasn’t completely untrue. Just not truth enough for Lucifer to phrase it in that way. It was always wise to pay attention to which Twin was speaking. If it wasn’t coming straight from Lucifer, it meant the truth was being bent a bit in order to appease whoever was listening.

The humans would catch onto that eventually. Right now, they were blinded by the inaccurate title Prince of Lies that someone had gifted Lucifer with. Whoever had decided on that title was likely dealing with the wrong Twin, if it wasn’t outright slander. Raguel could picture Michael gaining a name like that much easier than Lucifer.

He settled back in his chair, glad that this was going to finally get somewhere.

* * *

Ella stared at Rae-Rae stunned and feeling the beginnings of anger. Which was quickly being followed by understanding. As much as she wanted to be utterly furious and smack her friend, Ella couldn’t stop the light squeal that was building up in her chest.

Her oldest friend as an _angel_! Not just any angel either! The Angel of Death! That was so cool!

The anger was a very minor emotion in comparison to the rest that of them that were filling her. “You’re _Azrael_!”

Rae-Rae nodded, grinning a bit. “Yup, sure am. You’re taking this better than I thought you would. Since, you know, I told you I was a ghost.”

“We’ll get back to that,” Ella promised. “Right now I’m trying to figure out how the bible got you guys so wrong. I mean, I’ve met Lucifer and Michael. Definitely nothing like they are in the bible. Are all angels complete dorks like you three?”

Michael was as far removed from what people thought he was that Ella couldn’t figure out who they were actually dealing with. It definitely wasn’t Michael, that was for sure. She was pretty sure that the worst of the rumors about Lucifer (minus the goat thing and the bat wings) came from people dealing with Michael. She could totally see Michael earning the ‘Prince of Lies’ thing. Lucifer couldn’t even lie out of spite. And Michael might not tell a direct lie, but he was really into indirect lies. He didn’t see them as lies so he figured they didn’t count. Or that was the explanation Ella got from Raguel when she’d asked about it.

Lucifer was also nothing like the Devil was described. His long and passioned rant on the absurdity of using souls as currency was going down in precinct history as the most bizarre thing the consultant had ever done. It had been a very impressive speech, including examples and vast descriptions of how hard it was to get people out of Hell, why would he actively try and get more of them?

Ella was going to ask about that one day. When the answer wouldn’t completely fry her brain. Maybe in a year or two, unless it became super relevant.

She didn’t know much about Gabriel yet or Raguel to judge how they fit into the angel stereotype set by the religions of the world.

Azrael, or Rae-Rae, she knew better than any of the other angels. Her friend definitely wasn’t traditional Angel material. “Oh my god, your screaming match with that dog!” Ella burst out laughing as she remembered.

“It kept barking at me!” the literal Angel of Death defended. The grin was enough to tell Ella that she wasn’t actually upset by Ella’s laughing. “I deserved to yell back at him!”

“Lopez,” came a hesitant voice. Ella turned to find a few of her coworkers looking at her oddly. “Who are you talking to?”

“Lucifer’s baby sister, apparently,” the scientist grinned at them. “I still can’t believe you’re both related. And you told me you were a ghost! What was with that? Angel of Death isn’t anymore unbelievable!”

“I panicked!” Azrael pouted at her. “We weren’t supposed to tell people of Divinity. I was already breaking the rules a bit by coming to see you! And when you asked what I was, I said the first plausible thing!”

“Being a ghost isn’t more plausible than Angel of Death!” Ella laughed at her friend, more amused than really angry. Either way, her parents would have thought she was nuts.

“Is thing going to be a regular thing?” one of her coworkers asked. “Invisible angels coming around talking to us?”

They promptly shrieked. Ella turned to see them all staring right at Rae-Rae. She turned around and raised her eyebrows at the angel. “You could do that this entire time?”

“Well,” Rae-Rae said, not looking at her. “Yeah?”

Ella narrowed her eyes.

“I wasn’t supposed to!” she protested. “I was already breaking the rules by talking to you and well, I wasn’t going to risk getting an earful from Dad if I was going around appearing out of thin air in front of people, proving that Divinity existed! Have you heard Lu rant? Dad’s a hundred times worse! Who do you think he learned it from? Mom was more a stomp them into submission type!”

Okay, so that was properly horrifying. “Dude, the more I hear about your mom, the more I’m glad I didn’t know her well while she was here.”

“This is too weird,” Richards spoke up from the small gathering of her coworkers. “Lopez, I’m leaving some samples for you to run. Give me the results after you’re done talking to the Angel of Death.”

With that, the man turned around and walked away. Slowly, the rest of her coworkers started going back to work, being fellow forensic scientists.

“Sorry Richards,” Ella called after him. She flashed a smile to the others and turned back to her friend. “Alright, tell me what you’re really doing when you’re not talking to me.”

Azrael grinned, face delighted. Ella sat down and braced herself.

It was nice, not having to worry about people calling her crazy.

* * *

Chloe Decker hung up the phone, smiling for the first time in a very long time. Trixie’s voice after so long of not hearing it was like music to her. Even though the conversation had been hard, avoiding any mention of Lucifer and the rest of the Angels, her daughter had avidly filled her in on everything else that was going on in her life.

The idea of someone doing that to her daughter infuriated her. Trixie was everything to her. She might not have said it, but Chloe knew exactly who was responsible from her fast recovery and the imminent destruction of her former teacher and principal. Lucifer was the only one that Dan knew who would be able to do that so thoroughly. As much as the man didn’t understand children (really, how had he gotten the idea that children played fetch?) he adored Trixie. Her daughter had him wrapped around her finger.

Despite the ‘get it off, get it off’ expressions that Lucifer had started out with whenever she hugged him, Lucifer was good with Trixie. He didn’t talk down to her (minus the fetch thing) and was fully willing to destroy anyone that tried hurting her. Chloe couldn’t even pinpoint when the distressed terror had turned to affection.

Removed from the situation, the fact that Lucifer was afraid of children was hilarious. She was pretty sure that he’d mentioned having younger siblings before so it couldn’t be that he’d never met one for any length of time. Unless angels didn’t grow up like humans did?

Chloe wished that she could ask. She wasn’t going to, not after everything. The last thing she wanted to do was make this harder for her former partner. Chloe knew that he had, maybe even was, been in love with her. Instead of listening to her own brain and heart, she’d looked for answers elsewhere. She didn’t deserve the true answers when that had nearly cost Lucifer his very existence.

There were days that she wanted to sit down and scream. The horror of it would come back and shred at her until she was a crying mess. That face standing above Cain’s dead body visited her dreams no matter how much she tried to convince herself that Lucifer was no one to be afraid of.

She could understand what it was that drove people mad now. Chloe had always thought it was some mind trick. Instead, it was just a face that had been burned to a crisp with hellfire eyes.

It would have been easy to claim insanity based on that. Except she hadn’t been insane, just afraid. Afraid and stupid. She couldn’t claim shock either. It had been her own decision to go with Kinley’s plan. Chloe was past the point of trying to claim otherwise.

Her mother had been horrified when Chloe had confessed to her role in it all. The tears and sobs had made getting through the story coherently difficult, though she had still managed it somehow. Penelope Decker had done her best to sound supportive even if Chloe could hear the stunned anger in her mother’s voice. She could almost hear ‘I raised you better than that’ with every neutral sentence.

It wasn’t going to go public. Chloe had wondered how long it would be until the NYPD announced her involvement and she was arrested for trial. She’d been waiting anxiously for the last few weeks for that knock to sound on her door. Finally, she hadn’t been able to take it and called Monroe.

Her former boss was cold on the phone, which was the first sign that Chloe’s role wasn’t a secret anymore.

“As much as I would love to file an arrest warrant and have you tried for conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, and a long list of other crimes, I can’t,” she had said, voice furious. “If you go to trial and are acquitted that could cause a war between angels and humans. Lucifer’s siblings, if not God Himself, would probably take it as an act of aggression or approval for what Kinley did. If we want to make it out of the mess you put us in by going to that priest, I can’t touch you. That doesn’t mean I will not be watching for a single sign that you’ve put another toe out of line. What you did goes beyond mere murder. I got the full rundown of what would have happened if Morningstar had died.”

Then she’d hung up. Not waiting for a single word in Chloe’s defense or even bothering to say goodbye. The dial tone had hurt.

The reason that she was being left alone hurt more. Monroe was right, if Chloe wasn’t found guilty based on Lucifer’s status as the Devil, then there was a chance that the angels would retaliate. She was already Damned, Chloe didn’t know if she could live for the rest of existence if she brought down the apocalypse down on the planet as well. There was at least one angel that Chloe could picture slaughtering humans without a single regret.

Michael had made an impression on her in the brief time she’d seen Lucifer’s Twin. Chloe had felt the rise of terror, of prey being hunted by a predator that would shred them apart. That gaze was far more terrifying than anything Lucifer had ever done. If Chloe had met Michael first, she wouldn’t have ever considered going to Kinley after seeing Lucifer’s face. Lucifer had never managed to make her feel like a speck of dirt about to be eradicated from existence, for all that the body language had been exactly like Lucifer’s when he was angry.

It was a bitter realization that all that proof that Kinley had shown her never took into account that Lucifer was an identical twin. How much of that had really been her partner and how much had been Michael? There was almost no difference in appearance between the two other than preferred clothing from the pictures in the newspaper.

Another reason that talking to Lucifer could have stopped everything. Another way that she might have been able to save her friendship with the man.

If wishes were kisses, she thought to herself.

Chloe set her phone down, turning her attention back to the case file in front of her. For everything that had happened, Chloe Decker was still a damn good cop. She might not be able to change the past, but she could make sure that murderers were put behind bars where they belonged, waiting until the day that they ended up in the doors that populate Hell.

If she was going to spend eternity isolated away from the main part of Hell, Chloe was going to make sure she use the rest of her time on Earth to make sure that scum rotted in life as much as they would in death.

* * *

Amenadiel thought he’d misheard the first time. It took Linda repeating herself for the truth to settle in.

“You’re pregnant,” he said, voice soft as the implications started running around his head. He never even considered it was another’s child, Linda wasn’t the type to cheat on anyone she loved.

Oh yes, alcohol had definitely not been the right thing to off. Amenadiel really needed to pay more attention to what Lucifer was leaving out and what Michael was saying. His only defense was that it had been a very long time since he had to worry about the both of them conspiring together. They might have slid back into old habits quickly, but Amenadiel had spent a very long time forgetting the fact that Lucifer was the one that was incapable of lying.

Now that he was forcefully reminded of that, he was forgetting that while Lucifer might not lie, he could use the truth in very interesting ways. Like implying that he was offering Linda alcohol as a way to deal with a cold instead of a way to deal with the fact she was pregnant. Pregnant women as a general rule didn’t drink.

“I’m pregnant,” Linda confirmed, face worried as she waited for him to speak.

The problem was that he had no idea what it was that he was supposed to say. He’d never been one of the Grigori, never considered having a child at all. The death of the original Nephilim had scarred the host enough that no one had dared parent a child since.

Except him, apparently. How had that happened? They had used protection. More than enough of it that this shouldn’t have been happening.

It was though. He was going to be a parent.

“You’re upset,” she said after a moment, face trying to look neutral and failing.

“In shock,” Amenadiel corrected immediately. “The-there’s a history behind Nephilim. Has Lucifer told you?”

Linda shook her head, face going pensive. “No. He and Michael both seemed rattled though.”

They would. Both had seen first hand what happened to the Grigori after the death of their children.

“A long time ago, before the Flood that wiped humanity’s slate mostly clean before our half-brother was born, a group of angels fell in love with some humans,” he said before he could convince himself to leave it alone. That telling her would only scare her. Linda wasn’t just a human right now; she was the mother of the first Nephilim since close to the dawn of humanity. “We called them the Grigori. Female and male angels that procreated with their chosen humans, until they were giving birth to a new race. The Nephilim.”

“Mother, surprising us all, adored the children,” Amenadiel said, nodding at Linda’s shocked face. “Their status as half-human was outweighed by Her delight at grandchildren. Father was intrigued as well. Everything was good until a good of humans attacked and slaughtered the children while the Grigori were visiting the Host.”

Linda’s hand shot to her mouth, face horrified. “Are they stuck at that age?” she asked. “Or do their souls' age?”

Amenadiel sighed, closing his eyes. “They might have. Maybe. We never got the chance to find out. They were too angelic. When their bodies died, they were shot back towards the Silver City. Crossing dimensional barriers is taxing, a great number of things can go wrong. That was why Lucifer took so long to make it back. The Nephilim were so young. Too young to survive the trip. If they’d been just a tad more human, Azrael could have guided them.”

Linda sat, tears streaming down her face. “How could…” she didn’t finish her sentence. “How old…”

“None of them lived over five years old,” the angel said, wishing that he wasn’t having to tell her this. “The human parents, grief-ridden, track down, and killed the group responsible. Father, in His grief for them, Flooded the continent the human population was on. There was no Arc, that was a story that was taken from another religion. A select handful of humans with pure souls were transported to various continents around the world. Mother, in Her fury, frozen the continent once Father was done saving the humans that could be saved.”

Linda didn’t seem to care about that last part, her face was stained with tears that kept flowing and her hand was pressed against her stomach. “That’s why Lucifer looked that way. Why Michael seemed so stunned.”

“None of those that had been involved survived to Hell,” Amenadiel growled, the old rage returning. “Father destroyed their souls. Any that aided them were placed in a special part of Hell. Lucifer tracked them down and personally made sure there was no way they could escape their doors after he Fell. The rest of the humans that died in the Flood and ended up in Hell eventually joined Lilith. They became the first demons.”

He didn’t tell her about the animals who were now living in the Silver City. Or how Cain had dug himself from the ice after a thousand years of dying in it before making his way to the, at that point, much closer continents surrounding the frozen wastes were humanity had made their first appearance.

That the ‘missing link’ to human evolution was buried deep under the ice and dirt of Antarctica. If it had been Ella, Amenadiel would have gladly diverted attention away from the death of the Nephilim, his nieces and nephews, to more science like answers. That this was Linda meant that Amenadiel couldn’t bring himself to do that. To try and distract from the real horror.

Linda was pregnant with the first Nephilim since then and she needed to know the dangers. Why it was that there were no other Nephilim in the world. He wondered what his Father thought of this. Of the timing of Linda’s pregnancy with the return of angels into the world.

“If anything happens to this child, the Host will rain destruction onto the planet that’s never been seen before,” he said, voice hard. “It would be an act of war that would not go unanswered. The parents of the first Nephilim would be leading the charge. They have never recovered from their children’s death. With Lucifer, we’d have the full force of Hell as well. You’re both his friend and carrying his nephew, Linda. And they will get within ten feet of our children over my permanently destroyed body.”

He would not let his child succumb to the fate his nieces and nephews had. Not even Father’s rule of killing humans would stop him if it was a choice between this baby and obeying.

Amenadiel could have laughed if this had been anything else. After so long of holding the Rebellion against Lucifer, Amenadiel had found the line that would send him into his own version if crossed. It turned out that he wasn’t as different from his little brother as he’d thought, then.

“Would it be safer?” Linda asked, voice quiet. “To raise them in the Silver City? Would that save them from suffering dying as well?”

Amenadiel softened, letting the protective fury slide away. “It won’t come to that,” he swore. “We know better than to leave you unprotected. Maze will be with you whenever any of us are away.”

And he would be talking to Lucifer about getting a permanent protector. His brother had a kingdom of Demons that would obey his every word. He could retrieve one and bring it up to keep Linda safe even if one of her protectors was taken out. The Host would be more than glad to keep a closer eye on her as well, once he shared the news.

That wasn’t even mentioning the fact that God would likely be keeping a close eye on her as well. His Father had been furious and devastated when the Nephilim had been destroyed. There was no better protection than the watchful eye of the Creator of the Universe.

Linda nodded and he hugged her, cooing reassurances as he did.

When Trixie eventually sought them out, they were cuddled on Lucifer’s couch asleep.

* * *

This was much different from the place that the creature had come from. There was still loose ground underneath its monstrous claws yet ash did not rain down from above.

There was no smell of brimstone, no screaming of tortured creatures that glowed behind barricades. Instead, there were other sounds that were being made by strange flesh creatures, ones that did not smell of death and contained those same bright lights within them. They smelled appealing and strange.

It killed one, savoring the taste in its mouth as the blood seemed down its through. So much more delicious than those down below, kept in by those weak gates. Gates that it had destroyed with great prejudice. It cared not for the destruction it left behind, seeking the goal it had given itself.

Now that it was here, in the above, it grew further enraged by the Fire Lord that had kept it imprisoned. This it what the glowing prey had kept from it. This place filled with meals that were far more filling than anything that it had ever tasted before. If this was what those barricades had kept from it, the creature mourned its inability to get at the smaller glowing prey before.

The meal that the Fire Lord would make was more tantalizing. The glowing prey was much more powerful than this weak thing had been. It would feed its hunger for a very long time. It may even find more of the Fire Lord’s kind here. More food to fill its hunger until the end of everything.

The creature roared and ran for the shadows. It was weak after its trip and it needed to find a place to nest. Somewhere to hide until it could find the glowing prey and consume it.

The creature melted into the shadows until not a sign of it was left.

**Author's Note:**

> Sadly, I can't say when the next update will be. I've, finally, gotten back into work. Well, not my official job but a temporary one that ends just when my official job will be reopening for me to return to. This new job is creating course packs for classes at the university. Dear God, I never realized just what into making those. Holy crap, I have a new respect for why those fuckers are so expensive now. It took hours just to create stable link pages. Specifically, twelve hours. TWELVE HOURS for STABLE LINK pages! And can I just say how stupid it is that URLs work differently depending on the browser you're using? Therefore making it necessary to have multiple other link systems that will allow you to access the articles?! Not to mention the headache of MSU bought resources needing an additional part to the URL in order to let you use it because it won't work if you don't have that.
> 
> UGH.
> 
> Fall 2020 semester starts on 9/2 so here's to seeing if we have a new COVID outbreak on campus. We've already lost the football team or a good chunk of them at least. Sports are going to be intriguing this year. How is it that this year has seemed both unending yet moving by so quickly? I can barely figure out what day of the week it is anymore and it feels like it should be March, not August. Not that I want to go back to March because March sucked hard. Quarantine has really messed with my sense of time, no joke. 
> 
> Be safe! And all the Americans reading this, please for the love of everything, VOTE IN NOVEMBER! If we don't get a new president soon, I'm not sure if the country will survive. We're barely functional as it is. And for the non-Americans: Please stop blaming us for Trump. I know, we've done a good job fooling you into thinking that we're a democracy. Look up the electoral college, guys, and you'll have the real people who get a say in who is the US president. Fun fact: TRUMP LOST THE POPULAR VOTE, WHICH IS THE VOTE CARRIED OUT BY THE PEOPLE OF THIS COUNTRY. 
> 
> Now you know. I doubt that this will reach many people but I've been getting a bit annoyed by some of my out of country friends saying 'your country brought this on themselves when they voted him in'. No. We didn't vote him in. We voted Hilary in. So no, we did not bring this on ourselves, we're just forced do deal with the aftermath.
> 
> Tangent over, sorry all. Be safe, wear a mask, and please don't stab people who are wearing masks, why are we in a point that I have to ask this. Why. (Like I said, I've been stressed.)
> 
> ~MisteryMaiden~


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